The LOFT
by BohemianVampire
Summary: How did they all really meet? The story of how Mark Roger Benny Maureen Collins and even Mimi all came to live in the same building and the storied that follow. R&R...PLEASE! Will even add Marker! aka MarkRogerT for now may change
1. Mark Cohen

Disclaimers- I do not own any of the characters that are in the musical RENT! They all belong to the late but fucking amazing- Jonathan Larson

Chapter One:

Mark Cohen

"So this is it?!" asked Cindy as she looked at the empty dump that was the loft. She dropped the box she was carrying and began to walk toward the wall of windows that showed the street below. "If you ask me, this is a fucking waist of money." She shook her head as the man sold to his usual customers. "I mean father offered to pay for a place in Scarsdale, why East Village?"

Mark entered the loft, carrying two boxes and put them down in the corner. He whipped his forehead and laid his hands on his hips. "Because this is where the story is."

"What _story_?" Cindy sat on the windowsill then stood up when she noticed the dust.

"Not sure yet." Mark walked back down to the street and came back a few moments later carrying several milk crates. "Still looking for it." He dropped the crates by the boxes in the middle of the loft.

She looked at him again and shook her head. "You know I would have thought that you would have grown out of this _script thing_ when you graduated college, but you are still the same." She cocked her hip to one side and placed her hand on her hips. "You do know that you are not going to make much money off. You do know that not many writers/directors make it as far as to actually have one of their works in the theatre."

"That's the thing Cindy; I'm not looking for that. I just want to do what I love and that's it. That is what I'm going to do. I have to be here." He looked around the spacious loft and smiled. "I am meant to be here."

Cindy studied him for a moment then shook her head. "You are going to fail. I know it."

"Thanks for having faith."

She gave a small smile then shrugged her shoulders. "Just saying." She looked down at her watch and sighed. "Aaron and I are meeting at noon, so I better get going." Cindy gave Mark a small and extremely brief hug then left the loft with a smile playing on her face, mentally counting down the days until Mark comes home.

Mark watched as Cindy left the loft and shut the door behind her and began to look around the loft. He knew that this was a good thing. He knew that he was meant to be here, the only thing being if he could figure out what the reason was. He picked up the two boxes and began to slide the other with his foot to one of the rooms…or holes in the walls. The only furniture in the industrial loft was three cots, which were all piled in his room. Soon after he got settled, he planned on finding a roommate, maybe two, since the place was big enough and start looking for a job. But now he just wanted to get used to the place and start making it more homie.

A/N- First attempt on writing a pre-rent story….I need Reviews! HELP!!


	2. Roger Davis

Disclaimers- I do not own any of the characters that are in the musical RENT! They all belong to the late but fucking amazing- Jonathan Larson

Chapter Two:

Roger Davis

It was odd hours in the morning when Roger came stumbling into the apartment that he and Maureen shared. It had to have been the single most amazing night in his life. He met the girl of dream and he and the band got a gig at the CatScratch Club. Last night, he spent all of the money that was for rent, to take the gang out for a few drinks. He slammed the door and called for his step sister. "MAUREEN!" He staggered farther into his apartment calling for his sister. "Maureen…Maureen…MAUREEN!"

He heard a loud thump in her room that branched off of the living room. He plopped on the couch just as her door opened. Maureen stood in her doorway, sleep still in her eyes, and her wild hair tussled with sleep also. "Have you any fuckin' idea what time it is?" Roger let one of his legs dangle off of the couch and it fell with a loud _thump_ on the floor. He looked over at her without a care in the world. Maureen rolled her eyes and groaned. She noticed the bloodshot eyes and the slight bruises on his arm. "You're fuckin' high." She turned to walk back in her room and slammed the door. A quiet yet hysterical laughter began to come out of his mouth. The longer he laughed the louder it became. He laughed until he passed out.

The next morning when Roger woke up, he had the worst headache. He could not remember what happened last night. All he knew was that he felt like shit and that there was this slight pain in his southern region.

_BANG BANG BANG!_

There was a knock at the door.

"JESUS FUCK!" Roger fell of the couch and covered his head. "MAUREEN!" He yelled. No one answered. He called out again and again Maureen did not answer. The door was banged on again then he heard the door unlock and it creak open.

"Roger, its David, I'm coming in." Roger uncovered his face and saw a pair of worn out boots in front of him. He knelt down and met his blue eyes with Roger's bloodshot green ones. "Roger." He groaned as he helped Roger off the floor and on to a sitting position on the couch.

Roger rubbed his head. "So to what pleasure do I have to have you in my apartment?"

David sat on his heels and rubbed his eyes. "The rent, it's late."

"It's been a bad month, Maureen lost her job, and I haven't had many gigs."

"Roger…" He stood up and began to pace. "Look, I let the rent slide for the past six months. I have paid for you for the last three months. My father is getting pissed and told me to come here and evict you." He handed Roger a letter from his pocket.

Roger took the letter opened it.

_Dear Mr. Davis and Ms. Johnson. _

_We regret to inform you that, due to lack of rent payment, you will be evicted as of the day of December 25. If you are still in the apartment, the authority will be called and you will be forced out. _

_Mr. M G Jefferson III_

It took Roger two more times to read it before it sunk into him what the letter meant. He stood up so fast that it made his head spin. He lost his balance for a moment then threw out his hands to balance him self, once his head stopped spinning he looked down at the letter again. "What the hell does this mean?"

David rubbed his bald forehead. "It means that my father is sick and tired of not getting the rent. It's been six monthes. Roger. Not one, not two, but six months." Roger opened his mouth but David held his hands. "Don't think that I don't know what you are doing with the money. I know that you are spending it on smack and at the bar. Don't forget that we used to be friends."

Roger began to pace back and forth in the apartment. "But…but…Maureen's gonna kill me. I can get you the money." He walked over to where David was sitting on his heels and knelt in front of him. "Give me two days, I can get you the money. I swear. You owe me. Does not saving your ass in high school count as anything?"

David looked at Roger and had pity on him. Roger did save him from all of the bullies in school. But He had been covering Roger's ass for the past six months. "Look, there is nothing that I can do. I'm sorry. Just listen to him and do it. I have covered you ass for six months." David got up and left the apartment shutting the door quietly as he left.

Roger knew that he was in deep shit. He had promised Maureen that he had the rent covered. He said that he would take care of it, he said that he did. Now not only would she know that he lied but that he had proved their father right. That in the end they would never make it.

Not wanting to deal with it, Roger locked himself in the bathroom, shot up, and pass out. To later be woken by Maureen's banging on the door following her screams when she finds out that they are going to be homeless. But that would happen later, now all that was important was that he forgot about all the problems that he is facing and that he would enter a world that is fake to the one he lived.


End file.
